Snow Capped Macaroons Food

COCOA-CINNAMON MACAROONS

Steps:

• Preheat the oven to 325 degrees F and line a baking sheet with parchment paper. Whisk the egg whites, sugar, cocoa powder, cinnamon, orange zest, salt and vanilla in a large bowl until combined; fold in the coconut.
• Scoop heaping tablespoonfuls of the coconut mixture about 1 inch apart onto the baking sheet. Use your fingers to form into pyramids. Bake until golden brown around the edges, 20 to 25 minutes. Let cool 10 minutes on the baking sheet, then transfer to a rack to cool completely.

SNOW-CAPPED CHOCOLATE DROPS

Steps:

• HEAT oven to 350 degrees F.
• COMBINE flour, baking soda and salt in bowl of electric mixer. Add egg, brown sugar, shortening, cherry liquid and chocolate. Blend well at low speed. Stir in walnuts and cherries. Drop by rounded teaspoons onto ungreased cookie sheets.
• BAKE 10 to 12 minutes. Cool on racks.
• FROST each cooled cookie with 1 teaspoon marshmallow creme.

COFFEE MACAROONS

Steps:

• Preheat the oven to 375 degrees F. In a food processor, fitted with a metal blade, combine the almonds and brown sugar. Process until completely ground. Using an electric mixer, fitted with a whip attachment, whip the egg whites and cream of tartar on low speed until frothy. Add 1 1/2 cups of confectioners sugar. Increase the speed to medium-high and continue whipping until very stiff peaks and the whites just begin to slip and streak around the side of the bowl. Remove the bowl from the mixture and fold in the almond and sugar mixture. When almost completely incorporated, add the 2 teaspoons of coffee and continue folding until mixed. The batter must be smooth an shiny, and it should spread easily without being runny. If it is dull and firm, fold it a little longer to deflate it slightly and get the required consistency. But do not deflate it too much or the batter with spread too much and the tops of the cookies will crack when baked. Fill a large pastry bag, fitted with a 3/4 inch plain pastry tube, with the batter. Line two half sheet pans with parchment paper. Pipe the domes in staggering rows 1 inch wide and 1 inch apart. Unless you have 2 ovens, pipe only 1 sheet of cookies at a time. Bake for 1 minute. Place an empty baking sheet underneath the sheet of cookies, and continue baking, using a wooden spatula to hold the oven door ajar, until the tops of the cookies are very lightly browned and dry to the touch white the insides are still soft and the bottoms still pale, about 8 to 10 minutes. Lift the baking sheet of cookies off the empty baking sheet and take it to the sink. Pour cold water, about 1/2 cup, between the paper and the baking sheet (tilting the baking sheet so that the water runs over the entire surface and drains thoroughly into the sink) to steam the cookies off the paper. Then place the baking sheet on a wire rack and cool. Spread the bottoms of half the cookies with some of the Ganache. Place the remaining cookies, right side up, on top of the Ganache, pressing slightly to form a sandwich. Place the filled macaroons on a serving plate.
• Chop the chocolate and put it in a small stainless steel bowl. Bring the cream just to a boil, then reduce the heat and simmer for 2 minutes, stirring constantly with a wire whisk. Gradually stir the cream into the chocolate with the whisk and continue stirring until the chocolate is completely melted. Then, allow it to cool, stirring occasionally with a wooden spatula, until it starts to thicken.

CHOCOLATE MACAROONS

Steps:

• Freeze the almonds for 30 minutes, preheat the oven to 325 degrees and line 2 baking sheets with baking parchment
• In a food processor, combine the almonds and the confectioners sugar and pulse on and off for 40 seconds, or until powdery. Add the cocoa powder and pulse very briefly just to mix.
• In a large mixing bowl, beat the egg whites to very soft peaks and beat in the granulated sugar until the mixture is glossy, 1 minute, more. Sieve the almond-cocoa mixture over the egg whites and gently fold it in, being careful not to crush too much air out of the egg whites. Using a piping bag fitted with a 1/2-inch plain tip, pipe 1 1/2-inch circles of the mixture onto the parchment-lined baking sheets. Very gently poke a whole almond into the top of each one. Bake in the oven for 25 to 30 minutes, or until firm, turning the pans around halfway through the cooking time to cook them evenly. Transfer the sheets of paper onto damp tea towels and let stand for 5 minutes, then peel the macaroons off and finish cooling them on a rack. Serve at room temperature or store in an airtight tin, layered with sheets of waxed paper, for up to 2 weeks.

SNOW GLOBES

Steps:

• Make the cupcakes: Preheat the oven to 375 degrees F and coat a 12-cup mini-muffin pan with cooking spray. Sift the flour, cocoa powder and salt into a small bowl.
• Beat the egg yolk and 2 tablespoons granulated sugar in a medium bowl with a mixer on medium-high speed until light and thick, about 2 minutes. Beat in 2 teaspoons coffee and the vanilla. Fold in the flour mixture with a rubber spatula until just incorporated.
• Beat the egg white in a separate bowl with clean beaters on medium speed until foamy. Increase the speed to medium high and gradually add the remaining 1 tablespoon granulated sugar; beat until stiff shiny peaks form, about 3 minutes.
• Stir about one-third of the beaten egg white into the batter with a rubber spatula, then gently fold in the rest. Divide the batter evenly among the mini-muffin cups, filling them halfway. Bake until the cupcakes are golden brown and spring back when pressed, about 10 minutes. Poke a few holes into each with a toothpick, then brush with the remaining 1 tablespoon coffee. Remove to a rack and let cool completely.
• Make the frosting: Beat the butter and confectioners' sugar in a large bowl with a mixer on low speed until combined, then increase the speed to medium high and beat until light and fluffy, about 2 minutes; add the mascarpone and beat until just incorporated. Beat in the vanilla.
• Spread the coconut on a plate. Cover each cupcake completely with a thick layer of frosting, then roll in the coconut. Refrigerate at least 30 minutes and up to 1 day.